A huge famine hit North Korea in the mid-1990s. Ultimately, more than a million North Koreans died during the famine, and many only survived by eating grass, bugs, and tree bark. Lee Hyeon-seo More Quotes by Lee Hyeon-seo More Quotes From Lee Hyeon-seo The kindness of strangers and the support of the international community are truly the rays of hope we North Korean people need. Lee Hyeon-seo motivationinspirationkindness Breathing in South Korea, even though the life here is not easy, makes me so happy. I feel that sitting in a coffee shop, having a cup of tea, and looking out of the window at the blue sky - this is happiness. Truly happiness. Lee Hyeon-seo coffeeskyhappinesslife Inside North Korea, we have many informants and spies watching everyone; they're paid by the government. Even a husband and wife can't trust each other. Lee Hyeon-seo trustwifehusbandgovernment Because North Korea was so totally cut off, we didn't hear anything of the outside world. We had only one TV channel, which showed only propaganda, and we believed everything. Lee Hyeon-seo anythingonlyeverythingworld Like every country, North Korea has some very smart people. They could be contributing a lot more to science and other areas, but North Koreans are forced to spend so much time memorising the fake history of our dictators and other propaganda, so are at a huge disadvantage. Lee Hyeon-seo timesciencehistorypeople Some people criticize North Koreans and ask, 'Are they stupid? How can they believe those ridiculous things?' But I say, It doesn't matter if you're smart: if you were born in North Korea, you would be exactly like us. We don't know what freedom is. We have never enjoyed it. Lee Hyeon-seo youfreedomstupidpeople In communism, we never had any freedom - of movement, of speech, of press. We didn't even make own decisions for our lives, our future. We were human robots. Lee Hyeon-seo futurerobotscommunismfreedom History has proved that dictators can't last forever. Lee Hyeon-seo dictatorslastforeverhistory Among the difficulties I encountered, economic problems were the worst. I found that financial hardships could limit one's ability to realize one's dream, no matter how desperate and earnest you are. Lee Hyeon-seo difficultiesproblemsyoudream We always had power shortages in the country. I was living right next to the border with China, and it was the only country I could compare to my own. When I looked across the river, it was a completely different world - there were no people dying. It looked like a place full of colour, and that's what confused me. Lee Hyeon-seo rivermepowerpeople The TED talk I gave, that gave me another character I didn't know about. I'm not saying the mind of a hero, but a kind of responsibility. Every word I'm speaking, it's not from myself. I'm speaking for and representing the people of communist North Korea. Lee Hyeon-seo myselfmeherocharacter We were all blocked from western media, outside information. We were captured in a virtual prison cell. People would disappear in the middle of the night - not every day, but sometimes. We hear about it, and we never knew what happened inside the prison camps. I learned about them after I escaped. Lee Hyeon-seo daysometimesnightpeople My family lived under communism their entire lives. When they arrived in South Korea, they didn't even know how to use the bank system and ATM or the subway, nothing. Lee Hyeon-seo nothingknowfamilycommunism From the moment I was born, I was fed propaganda. I viewed the Kim dynasty not only as our fearless protectors from the imperialist forces, but also as gods. Lee Hyeon-seo i-was-bornmomentfearlessborn My favourite place in South Korea is Jeju Island: it's a tropical paradise with sandy beaches, turquoise waters, and the magnificent Geomunoreum lava tube system of underground caves. Lee Hyeon-seo south-koreaislandplaceparadise When I was little, I thought my country was the best on the planet. And I grew up singing a song called 'Nothing To Envy.' And I was very proud. In school, we spent a lot of time studying the history of Kim Il-Sung, but we never learned much about the outside world, except that America, South Korea, Japan are the enemies. Lee Hyeon-seo besttimesonghistory Certainly in North Korea, man is always superior to woman. Even the government treats women horribly. What is the slogan? Woman is a flower. Lee Hyeon-seo womanmanwomenflower When I was growing up, my mum was doing illegal smuggling with China. Sometimes she would see a fortune teller for advice. One time I went with her: 'In your future, you'll be living in foreign country and eating the foreign country rice,' she said. Lee Hyeon-seo youfutureeatingtime Living in China, I found out that the bright new world was not for me, not for defectors. My life in North Korea had been OK; suddenly, in China, I had to feed myself and earn money. Worst of all, North Korean defectors are hunted by the government. Lee Hyeon-seo myselfmemoneylife I defected to South Korea in search of freedom of speech and movement. I had longed to put my feet on this soil, even in my dreams. Lee Hyeon-seo dreamsfreedom-of-speechfreedomfeet
